Chocolate Muffin Tops

My daughter just came up with the name for my invention. Muffin Thingies... Well, it does look like muffin tops, and the texture is about the same, so I'll call them Chocolate Muffin Tops.
I did not think they would be such a hit with the kids. They are not sweet enough for my taste buds. Than again, my taste buds aren't normal either. I need about 2 -3 tbsp of sugar for a cup of coffee and eat Doce de Leite by the spoon full. Not to mention that one of my favorite treats as a kid was chewing sugar cane at my grandparents house.

Here is what you will need:

1 box of super moist chocolate cake mix ( I used one that had chocolate chips in it)
4 egg yolks
1/2 c canola oil
1 can kidney beans

In a food processor, blend the drained and rinsed beans with the oil.

The bean cream can be grainy and that's fine. 

With the cake mix I got, it will blend with the chips.

Add the bean cream to the yolks and than the cake mix and mix until blended.

You will need an electric mixer, and it can be a hand held one.

Scoop the batter and place them in a lined baking sheet.

I love parchment paper for cookies and rolls.

To scoop the batter I used one of those cookie scoops that look like ice-cream scoops.

Bake at 375F for about 15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

My husband had some dunking in the coffee.

My daughter with chocolate milk.

My son with apple juice.

It's been 3 days and I'm almost out of them. 

To me it's a treat, but since it has some nutrition, I'm allowing them to have for breakfast and snacks during the day. 

It is the only way I get my 3 year old to eat beans

SOME OF MY CREATIONS

FIRST COMMUNION , kinda obvious!

 

 

 

UNDER THE SEA

PURPLE SEDAN

ARIEL ON A SHELL

TURKEY TIME

LOVELY JUNGLE ANIMALS

MY FAVORITE PUMPKIN!

THE OMNITRIX/BEN 10

THE HULA GIRL THAT DANCED SO MUCH SHE STARTED TO MELT!

GINGERBREAD LAND

SNEAKYDOODLE CAKE

I just came up with this one after reviewing some recipes online.
And to be honest, it tastes pretty good. My type of coffee cake with a healthy twist.


You will need:

1/2 c. butter at room temperature
1 can of navy beans
1 1/2 c Demerara sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 1/2 c flour

cinnamon sugar to sprinkle after baked
baking spray
13-9 inch baking pan

 This is how your navy beans need to look like after processing. 

Cream butter, beans and sugar with an electric mixer at high speed until fluffy. 

Add baking soda, cinnamon and salt, then mix.

Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat.

Add flour and mix on low speed until blended.

Spray the baking pan and sprinkle the cinnamon sugar all over.

Scrape batter into pan, smoothing it in an even layer. 

Bake until lightly golden and set in center, about 30 minutes.

 MAKE SOME COFFEE AND ENJOY!

OR

HAND THE KIDS A NICE CUP OF CHOCOLATE MILK AND LET THEM ENJOY!

OR

BOTH!

Blueberry Bagel Bread Pudding

I just found some blueberry bagels in the fridge but I knew I couldn't eat them all by myself, then a light bulb went up. Why not make a bread pudding? And so I did. Even though I have no formal recipe or experience with bread pudding. Never made one. I always relied on grandma, mom and my mom's maid. Somehow they always make me some when I go to Rio. But, still they are nothing like the American Bread Pudding.

Here is what I used:
3 blueberry bagels
2 c. of milk
1 c. of sugar
2 tbsp of cinnamon
1 tsp of ground clove
1 tsp of ground nutmeg
4 eggs

Extra cinnamon sugar to sprinkle on top.

Cut up the blueberry bagels and place them in a baking pan.
Don't forget to either butter and flour the pad or use some baking spray.
In a mixing bowl add the milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and whisk.

Pour the milk and eggs mix over the chopped bagels.
I tried to push the bagels down so they can soak up a little more.
I'm not sure if that's very orthodox when it comes to bread pudding. Then again, I wasn't raised with this type of bread pudding. My family makes the Portuguese style one. It's baked in a bundt pan and has Port Wine and raisins.

Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon mix.

Bake for approximately 30 minute at 350F.

It's smells really good!

Yum! It turned out pretty good!
Next time I'll try to mold it Brazilian style and add some fresh blueberries too.

Deuclea's Chicken with Corn Cream

This is yet another one of my grandmother's recipes that I just love. I don't know how she came up with this combination of flavors and I never heard of anybody else making something similar.
But, again, my grandmother and I share a problem. We make up recipes and don't actually have a formal recipe. This one, she sort of dictated to me over the phone about 10 years ago. I needed a different dish for a friend's surprise birthday party. It was a big hit and I had no leftover for my brother who was living with me at the time (it was more like me living with him).

Here is what you will need:

Chicken Breast
Tomato Sauce
Onion ( could use powder)
Garlic ( could use powder)
Salt
Parsley
Cooked Ham
Mozzarella
Corn
Sour Cream

The measurements I used for this one will allow for 2 adults servings, well served. Double it up as you want. I just think this is the easiest way to get started since it's a pretty round set of ingredients.

In a medium sauce pan I added:
1/2 cup of tomato sauce ( it can be store bought or you might prefer your own)
1 lbs diced chicken breast
2 tsp dry parsley / or 2 tbsp of fresh chopped parsley
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 pinch of salt

In Brazil every recipe starts with a onion and garlic sauteed in oil. I just skip this step to save calories and possible side effects. I need to avoid oils and thick fats because of a GI surgery. Trust me, skipping this step will not make this dish any less yummy.

Stir and let it cook.
The chicken should be just covered in sauce so it soaks up with the flavors.

Once the chicken is totally cooked, when you break the pieces in half with the wooden spoon, you can remove from heat and set aside.

In a food processor ( I used a mini one):
1 can drained sweet corn
2 tbsp sour cream*
Turn it on!

* We do not have Sour Cream in Brazil, we use Creme de Leite. Here in the US it's called Table Cream, but it's not the easiest thing to find. You may find it in grocery stores that have a Latin section. It would be next to the condensed milk.

This is how it should look like. Set aside.

1/2 lbs of cooked ham chopped up. Set aside.
Grab the shredded mozzarella.
you will need 1 cup or whatever it takes to cover the dish.

This is a small recipe, so use a small baking dish.
This one is a Pyrex Loaf Pan.
Spread the chicken in the bottom. But don't just dump the whole thing.
Spoon the chicken out so you don't have a whole lot of sauce on the bottom.

Cover the chicken with the ham.

Cover the ham with the mozzarella.

Finally, cover the cheese with the corn cream and place it in the oven at 350F.
Bake it until golden brown.

The sauce bubbles up to the top. That's what makes it look like it has a frame, or might look like it burned a but, but it did not.

Ready to go!
Serve with white rice.
My grandmother also served with her diced fries with parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!

Tie Dye/Raibow Cake Part 1

My daughter finally decided on a cake for her 7th birthday and it couldn't be crazier.
A Tie Dye Cake, inside and out.
But, I have a number of problem to address too. The place she picked to have the party doesn't allow outside foods and I have at least 3 children with diet restrictions: gluten, peanut, eggs and dairy.
In order to please them all and reduce the chances of having my foods tossed in the trash can, I'm working on a 2 tier cake instead of a cake and allergens free cupcakes. The bottom cake would be normal... with all the normal ingredients and the top suited for those with restrictions.

Back to the Tie Dye Cakes.
I found this wonderful blog Omnomicon, and she had what seemed to be the easiest cake recipe ever.
1 box of white cake mix
1 can of clear soda
Food coloring

Than I thought I could try it with the gluten-free mix. And so I did!
But I had one problem already. I only had one box of the mix and it didn't seem to be enough for the amount of soda. Although it tasted fine the texture wasn't so good.

Gluten-Free version

So the gluten-free, egg-free, nut-free, dairy-free cake is too gooey. But I'm not giving up! I'll give it another try next week.

Now to the main cake. I'm still using Omnomicon's recipe.

It's pretty cool to see the bubbles from the soda rising the dough.



Time to add color to the batter. My daughter will love to help with this task when it's time to make her actual cake. Then she will brag about it during the party.



Pretty Cool!


Since I just dropped the batter for the gluten-free version I decides to make swirls and see what happens once it's baked.



I kinda liked the way the colors were on the gluten-free version.
For the real thing I will not make swirls again, the colors will be more vibrant.



And the verdict: It's a no go for the party, but good enough for dinner dessert.
My husband said it tastes like Fruit Loops (and looks like it too).
My daughter says it's ok, but too "sticky".
I agree! It tastes fine, but too gooey to be a 2 tier cake.
It is a cool idea, easy enough for your kids to pitch in and have lots of fun. The other good point is that the recipe does not make a 2 layer cake as the box mix would recommend. It makes half the servings so you won't have tons of leftovers either.

I'll be tackling the allergen free version and normal version again next week and will post step by step again.

SATURDAY'S MENU

We decided to start the day with something fun. Movies!
To save money I popped some corn and packed some other snacks and water for the kids. But I forgot to get drinks for me and the husband. OMG! Big mistake! I never realized how much things cost at the cinema's concession. I paid 3.75 for a small soda. WOW!

The movie was great and I got the family involved in getting the table ready while I was cooking.

Lunch - Mongolian Beef with Noodles and Mandarin Cake.

Kids snacked away with stuff we had around and later I made a treat.

Dinner - Grilled Ham and Cheese with organic Cheese Puffs, Cheerios Peanut Butter bars.

FRIDAY'S MENU

So far so good! No restaurants yet.
We had another early day and my husband may have to go out for dinner with a work buddy from overseas. So tonight might be me and the kids again.
I did have ingredients ready for an oriental supper, but we might have to pass it.

After my daughter's Taekwon Do class I called my husband to check on dinner plans. The answer was yeas, he had to go with the friend. Since he was going out and the kids haven't had "junk" in a while I made another call. PIZZA NIGHT!

Dinner - Cheese Pizza and Mandarin Cake

Thursday's Menu

My husband had to leave really early and I had to wake my 3 year-old at 6:30am to tag along on the ride to my daughter's school. No! The school is not that far, just starts really early 7:45am.
By the time we came back home I was already getting dinner started.

Cleaned the split chicken breast I found on sale for 89c /lbs. Put the chicken to marinate in Italian Dressing and placed in the fridge. Then I moved on to the Green Bean Fritter. I had the batter ready in a bowl to be spooned and fried later. By 9:30am it was ready to go.

Then I was off to drop my son off at daycare and headed to my dental appointment.

I was a busy, busy day! But I managed to have dinner on the table one more night.

Dinner - Grilled Chicken, Green Bean Fritters, White Rice and Peaches

Wednesday's Menu

Wednesdays are my carefree days. Is the only afternoon my daughter has no extra activities and I try to take the kids to the pool, so we all can take a break. Because of that I debated the entire day if I should also give the kids a break and stop by a fast food drive-thru or not. At the end I went home and made ourselves the same meal they would have ordered anyways. They just didn't get the toys and the cost of 3 meals was the same as 1 kids meal at the fast food place

Dinner - Chicken Tenders, Fries and Yogurt.

Tuesday's Menu

So once again I was craving my grandmother's pasta with shrimp. So I got some nice clean shrimp and started cooking. Than I realized that I wasn't serving any veggies. I then decided to add some ingredients. This time the shrimp had the company of mushroom, peas and white corn.

Lunch - Chicken Tenders and left over Cauliflower Souffle / Peaches
Snach - Pao de Queijo ( Brazilian Cheese Rolls)
Dinner - Grandma's Shrimp Pasta with veggies / Honeydew

Grilled Chicken Success

I can not believe my 3 year old son ate the grilled chicken and asked for more.
It was probably the easiest chicken I have ever made.

Gabriel's Grilled Chicken ( I'll name it after my son so I remember he loved it)

8 boneless chicken thighs
1/2 bottle of Newman's Own Italian Family Dressing
Sea salt

Add all ingredients in a marinating bowl and place it in the fridge for at leat 1 hour. I got it ready in the morning and grilled for dinner.

Bom Apetite!

ON TODAY'S MENU

Here is today's menu:

Lunch - Mac&Cheese for the kids
Afternoon Snack - Red Velvet cake made with beets
Dinner - Grilled Chicken Thighs, Cauliflower Souffle, Rice and Beans

New Budget Challenge

So here is the deal. Nobody is swimming in money these days and we are no different. Sure we have some room, but not that much. I believe in active children and even with just two kids, those sport's classes and gear started to get really expensive. In order to be able to afford the extras we decided to cut back on restaurant bills. We will allow ourselves to eat out once or twice a week.

So far so good. We are ending the weekend and nobody had to go out to eat yet.

It's a learning process. I need to plan meals ahead so I have the ingredients ready. Also try to prepare some dishes ahead of time.
Here is what we had in the past few days that might inspire others to cook something different:

Wednesday's Dinner - Brazilian Chicken Strogonoff with Rice
Thursday's Dinner - Chicken Tenders and Egg Rolls
Friday's Dinner - Beef Tacos
Saturday's Lunch - Calzones
Saturday's Dinner - Chicken Taquitos
Sunday's Brunch - Waffles, Scrambled Eggs, Maple Sausage and Tater Toots
Sunday's Dinner - Burguers and Chips

How many dishes can you make with ground beef?

Any ideas out there?
I think ground beef is one of the most versatile main ingredients of all times.
I'm in a quest for new dishes to add to my menu. And if anybody would like an idea of what to make with ground beef check out my list.
Already cooked the ground beef can be:

Served straight with rice and beans
Sheppard's Pie
Enchilada's
Tacos
Crepes (Panquecas)
Spaghetti Bolognese
Stuffed Zucchinis
Stuffed Peppers
Lasagna
Empanadas (Pastel)
Frittadas


Different ways to start the cooking process such as mixing ingredients before baking, grilling or cooking can include:

Meatloafs
Burguers
Stuffed Cabbage Leaves
Stuffed Grape Leaves
Salisbury Steaks

Easy Mornings

About two weeks ago I decided to clean up the pantry and sort the food by groups. Mostly organizing the cereals, nuts, dried fruits, bars, and individually packed snacks for easy access from the kids. Than a light bulb appeared over my head:

PRE-PACK SCHOOL SNACKS FOR THE WEEK

I already had brown paper bags. All I did was write the week days on them and started sorting snacks. In no time I had a whole week of mornings snacks ready to go and a couple more after-school snacks too.

All I had to do was pick on of the bags and place in my daughter's backpack and she was ready to go.

Because I did the packing of the week at the same time I was able to pack a variety of things to keep snack interesting and healthy. I tried to keep a caloric count under 300 and lower sugar levels as well.

Here are some of the packing ideas:

Monday - 100 cal, cheez its, pouch of bunny gummy
Tuesday - 100 cal. mini blueberry muffins, natural apple sauce
Wednesday - dried strawberries and bananas pouch, chex mix snack pack ( you can use snack size zip bags)
Thursday - cereal fruit bar
Friday - apple, cheese crackers

Grandma's Food

So, last week I hit the right spot with the hubby. He has had a lap-band placed around his stomach about a year ago. With that he has some food restrictions. But some of the restrictions go away if those type of foods are fresher than you would usually get from the store.
He always complains about the shrimp being chewy and it's hard to eat.

But... I was missing my Grandma's Food. Especially a dish she made the last time we visited her in Rio. So, I went to the store and bought 2 lbs of fresh, easy peel, shrimp despite the fact that Jason would complain about it.

The only thing I changed from my grandma's dish was the type of pasta. She used a fresh fettuccine and I use mini penne.

Ok, so he complained that I was cooking with shrimp, but when he took the first bite he gave up. You see, I have a tough crowd here. So when I get compliments from the husband or kids I get really happy. He said it tasted like something you would order at Macaroni Grill or Maggiano's.

Problem is, I made up the recipe. If there is a request for recipe I'll make it again and take notes to share.

A Place to Start

Alright! I've been picking my brain about what to start with.
I just can't seem to find a nice and interesting point to get started, so I decided to just start.
There are way to many things going on at the same time to just pick one topic and go for it. The main subject will always be food and family.
So what better place to start than my kitchen table?

I just made some quesadillas for the kids and trying to organize the weekly schedule to make my life a bit easier. And hopefully help others with new ideas.

There you go! I started! From my Kitchen Table! ;0)

In the beginning

Once upon a time, there was a girl called Gabriela. And she liked to hang out with her grandma in the kitchen. She would do the things her grandma couldn't do because of an injured wrist. No cooking, just shredding coconuts, whipping egg whites, whipping doce de leite and most of all... licking all the wooden spoons at the end of the day.